1939 Lincoln Wheat Cent Proof
Proof struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 13,520 made
- Mintage
- 13,520
- Metal
- 95% copper, 5% tin and zinc
- Weight
- 3.11 g
- Diameter
- 19.05 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1939 Lincoln Wheat Cent Proof worth?
Collectors pay a real premium for this date, worn or not, because far fewer were made than usual. Uncirculated pieces go much higher.
What would make yours worth more:
- Grade and, for proofs, strong cameo contrast
- A die variety or minting error
- Certification by PCGS or NGC, which buyers expect for scarce dates
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1939 Lincoln Wheat Cent Proof rare?
- Fairly. The Mint made 13,520 for collectors. Most were kept in their original packaging.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1939 Lincoln Wheat Cent?
- On the obverse, directly below the date. Philadelphia cents have no mint mark.
- How many 1939 Lincoln Wheat Cent proofs were made?
- 13,520.
What to check on your 1939
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- Judge the grade under good light. Check the parallel lines in the wheat stalks, Lincoln's cheek and jaw, plus the hair above the ear. Uncirculated cents are also graded by color (RD, RB, BN) and full red coins are worth multiples of brown ones.
Proofs from 1939 were struck one at a time in small numbers and many were later spent or mishandled. Look for hairlines from cleaning, which lower the grade.
The story of the 1939
The Depression low and the late 1930s boom (1930 to 1942)
The Depression cut cent demand sharply. Production fell to 19 million in Philadelphia in 1931. San Francisco struck just 866,000, creating the 1931-S, a key date that many people saved at the time, so it is more available in uncirculated grades than its mintage suggests. Output stayed low in 1932 and 1933, with no San Francisco cents in either year. Recovery began in 1934, when Philadelphia struck 219 million.
Proof cents returned in 1936, first with a satin finish and later with a brilliant finish. The 1936 also has a doubled die obverse. Output climbed through the late 1930s and topped 887 million in Philadelphia in 1941 as the defense buildup increased spending. Because collecting albums became popular in this decade, many rolls were saved, so uncirculated red coins from 1934 onward are much easier to find than earlier dates.
How to recognize it
Abraham Lincoln faces right with IN GOD WE TRUST above, LIBERTY to the left and the date to the right. The mint mark, when there is one, sits below the date. The reverse has two ears of wheat framing ONE CENT and UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, with E PLURIBUS UNUM across the top. The designer's initials V.D.B. appear on the reverse of some 1909 coins and on Lincoln's shoulder from 1918.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Lincoln Wheat Cent (1909–1958) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1939 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Proof |
| Mintage | 13,520 |
| Face value | 1¢ |
| Composition | 95% copper, 5% tin and zinc (bronze) |
| Weight | 3.11 grams |
| Diameter | 19.05 mm |
| Edge | Plain |
| Designer | Victor David Brenner |
Other 1939 Lincoln Wheat Cent issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 Lincoln Wheat Cent | 316,466,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1939 Lincoln Wheat Cent Proof | 13,520 | Proof | – |
| 1939-D Lincoln Wheat Cent | 15,160,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1939-S Lincoln Wheat Cent | 52,070,000 | Circulation strike | – |
Mintage: Lincoln cent mintage figures (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.